


Proof in the Pudding

by SorceressSupreme



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Great British Bake Off, Be_compromised Promptathon, Gen, Mission Fic, there's really only clintasha if you squint sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:15:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26404060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SorceressSupreme/pseuds/SorceressSupreme
Summary: Natasha and Clint go undercover on a famous baking show.
Relationships: Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov
Comments: 7
Kudos: 27





	Proof in the Pudding

**Author's Note:**

> written for crazy4orcas' [prompt](https://be-compromised.dreamwidth.org/583594.html?thread=11453354#cmt11453354) for the be_compromised [promptathon](https://be-compromised.dreamwidth.org/583594.html)!

"What have we done to piss Coulson off?" Natasha groans, looking at the mission file in front of them.

"Uhh… what did _you_ do, you mean." Clint replies, looking at Natasha.

"Excuse me?"

"I happen to be _great_ at baking." Clint tilts his chin up.

"I highly doubt that. I've "eaten" your cooking before." Her stomach lurches at the memory or it.

"They're two completely different skills, Natasha."

"We'll see about that."

* * *

Clint is introduced as a new baker and integrates into the rest of the bakers. Natasha watches on as a PA and is quietly horrified as Clint effortlessly banters about puff pastry and pâte à choux. She would lust for him falling on his face when shooting starts in a week, but she's called away for yet another tea-and-coffee run instead.

* * *

The first week is Pizza Week and this is apparently a disastrous occurrence for most contestants based on the interviews Natasha has to sit in on. Clint is annoyingly overconfident about the first challenge to make a pizza that reflects him as a contestant. Natasha has a narrative to push so she has to push him to seem even more confident. She grits her teeth through him winking at her and hopes they make him seem as much like a mansplaining asshole in the final cut as possible.

The judges place Clint's pizza in the middle of the pack, but praise the "bite" of his crust.

'I told you so' he signs to her in the chaos of post-episode interviews.

'Got lucky' she signs back when there's a gap of no eyes on them.

* * *

While Clint is busy working on his showstopper, Natasha does her own research into the cast and crew. Her position as a PA basically lets her get into any part of the set or production area without much questioning. All she needs to get in is a tray of paper cups and looking incredibly harried.

Not that a TV show needs to focus on security, but it makes her feel oddly good about her craft when she can get around so easily.

When she gets back to her hotel room, she's not surprised to find Clint there and her window wide open.

"Security check." he grins at her.

Natasha rolls her eyes and plugs the USB drive filled with several cloned hard drives into her laptop.

"Someone's going to notice." she says, starting at the top of her list.

"Ah. That would suck. We'd have to pretend to date, then."

Natasha tries hard to not grin. She really does.

"Just think of the controversy. You, a PA with absolutely zero influence on the outcome of the show, dating me, the underdog of the season." he continues, grinning in return.

"Clint. We _can't_ make it into the baking tabloids."

"Not _again_ you mean?"

She throws one of her pillows at him without looking away from the screen. One of them has to do this work.

"Alright, alright. Need help with anything?"

He leans over to look at what's on her screen.

"I need to work on the DP… director of photography," she adds at Clint's confused look, "He's got a bunch of encrypted files on his computer on set. Which is extra weird because why have private files like that on a computer anyone has access to?"

"On second thought. You're not going to help me with my crumble. So why should I help you with the paranoid DP?"

"We're not here for you to _win_!" she calls after him.

But he's already out the window.

* * *

At the end of the second week, the crew descends on the leftover baked goods from the three challenges that shooting day. Natasha makes sure that Clint is off on his recap interviews before trying some of his crumble.

She takes a moment to appreciate the complimentary flavors of the tart berries and sweet but perfectly crunchy topping before realizing she's going to have to confront the fact that Clint _can_ bake, after all.

* * *

Getting close to the DP is a matter of a bit of social engineering to find the PA currently assigned to him. He's notoriously aloof, so it's easy for her to get his former PA to trade assignments with her.

In the following week she learns that the DP might not be "aloof" so much as criminally overworked. While the "once a week" shoot schedule is friendlier for the contestants and judges, the answering once-a-week release schedule leaves little time for editing. Let alone also directing the shoot.

And then he appears to also be playing PA for someone else, constantly running out even in the middle of shoots to get tea or biscuits and disappearing somewhere else on set.

"Can I… help with your errands?" Natasha offers.

He shoots her a sharp glare that would probably send a PA more interested in a long career in film and television scurrying back into the shadows. She simply smiles her best assistant smile.

"Listen. I don't know what "errands" you're talking about, but if I was running "errands", they're probably too important for you to be doing, PA."

So Natasha has to follow him the next time he does one of his deliveries. And finds that he's delivering to the head judge on the show. And also that they're not just deliveries, the PA stays for much longer than necessary to only be dropping off a snack.

"So how are you going to get in there?"

She watches through the video call screen as Clint samples a series of jam experiments on the counter in front of his camera.

"I could probably manage another schedule shift to work with that makeup artist… but it might be getting suspicious."

Clint hums, clearly distracted making notes in his recipe book.

"Yeah, probably better to stick to it for now. I might be close to figuring out his decryption passcode, anyway."

A timer goes off in the background. Clint disappears briefly to retrieve his cake rounds from the oven. Natasha waits while he carefully levels the rounds then begins constructing the cakes using the different jams.

"Are you going to be okay if we wrap this up before the end of the season?" she grins.

Seeing Clint's concentration face while baking instead of while drawing on a bow is equally disconcerting and amusing.

"Oh I'll bite it any week now. So the sooner you wrap this up the better. Having to skulk around set would _not_ be a good look."

Natasha laughs. "So when we get back what are you going to bake for me?"

She barely gets a glimpse of his scowl before he hangs up on her.

* * *

It's biscuit week when the DP finally punches in his password while she's in the room. While she's watching the technical segment, she remotes into her laptop and decrypts the files with his password. She skims enough to find some insider trading, some shady investments… and an active membership to a very exclusive and paranoid dark web ring where all of this was obtained from. Which is probably what SHIELD was hoping to get.

"And what do you have planned for today's showstopper?" Natasha asks, at the same time signing 'Trash it' to Clint.

Clint puts on a truly smarmy grin and looks straight to camera to say, "I've got a really unique showstopper planned."

Three hours later, the judges are listening to Clint's description of what appears to be a chocolate-covered Oreo.

"Well. That's certainly unconventional." one says while the other tastes.

"And what did you say the filling was?" the other asks, obviously trying to power through the modest bite they'd taken.

"Peanut butter whipped into marshmallow fluff." Clint answers, "It's sort of a s'mores-inspired sandwich cookie."

"We certainly appreciate some creativity… I'm not quite sure you hit your target with this one, unfortunately."

Clint's shocked expression is probably due more to the judge's phrasing than the feedback. Next to her, the DP is delighted with the reaction shot they got of him.

* * *

"So." Natasha says, watching Clint baby some dough and measure oil, "All those times you complained about not having donuts at 2am… and you could have just made fresh ones for yourself?"

Clint scowls at her. "I mean I don't _have_ to make you _any_ donuts."

"Okay let's not do anything chocolate-dipped-smores-oreos level rash, now…"


End file.
